The Performance of US Hospitals as Reflected in Risk-Standardized 30-Day Mortality and Readmission Rates for Medicare Beneficiaries with Pneumonia

Using hospital and outpatient Medicare claims between 2006 and 2009, this cross-sectional study describes patterns of hospital and regional performance in the outcomes of elderly patients with pneumonia, a leading cause of hospitalization and death in this population. Risk-standardized 30-day mortality and readmission rates for patients with pneumonia vary substantially across hospitals and regions and may present opportunities for quality improvement.